


Close Quarters

by loce21



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Bending (Avatar), F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-17
Updated: 2020-12-31
Packaged: 2021-03-10 16:55:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,739
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28120503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loce21/pseuds/loce21
Summary: Legend of Korra Martial Arts/Bending AUKorra has spent her entire childhood training to grow stronger. With single-minded obsession, she pushed the limits of her strength as that Avatar to new heightsAdding on being homeschooled, and an early career in a White Lotus combat team, Korra had very little time to relax, or make friends for that matterGiven time off to relax and attend school, she jumps at the chance to meet new people her own age and spend some well needed time away from violence,  or so she hopesAnd Asami Sato is blown away by the strong, talented, slightly awkward, and mesmerizing blue-eyed transfer student who takes the Republic City Academy by storm
Relationships: Bolin/Opal (Avatar), Korra/Asami Sato, Lin Beifong/Kya II
Comments: 43
Kudos: 187





	1. Hard Work

**Author's Note:**

> This is a bit of an indulgence of mine. I really just wanted to write a power-tripping fantasy based on the world of the Legend of Korra. It's completely got a completely different tone than my other story
> 
> There's definitely a bit of "How cool can I make Korra before it seems unbelievable"
> 
> I really wanted to focus on the martial arts of the Avatar universe. It always confused my why fight scenes were usually just pure bending even at close distances, and never made use of hand to hand. I took a few liberties here and there, and didn't stick closely to the styles of martial arts given to each bending discipline by the creators. I wanted to pick a style of combat that really fits each of the characters personality and bending style
> 
> Definitely pulling influence from a variety of different novels/shows/movies
> 
> Obviously going to feature Korrasami, but I really want to put major emphasis on the action in this series
> 
> Going to try and experiment with multiple POVS
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Thwack

Thwack

Thwack

Korra regained her balance and quickly shuffled her feet after the succession of 3 high kicks to the punching back in front of her. Breathing heavily, she entered her neutral posture, facing sideways with her palms held upwards in front of her, and prepared to unleash another set of attacks.

Shunk

Thwack

This time, it was a fierce downwards chop with her right hand, landing on an imaginary neck, coupled with a spinning kick using the inertia of the twisting of her body. At this point, the bag was shaking wildly, chain rattling in its fixture attached to the plaster ceiling.

Korra decided it was time to kick it up a notch. As she was falling towards the ground, she planted her hands in the dirt below, bent a condensed blue flame out of the sole of her left leg, and spun the opposite direction she came from, propelling her foot into the top of the bag hard enough to crack open a skull. Bringing her body back upright, she then sent a blast of air into the ground from her right leg, rocketing her knee into the chin of the unsuspecting (and likely dead at this point) sack of sand, completing the motion with a backflip as her legs flew over her head and back to the ground. She was back in her neutral stance, arms at her sides, legs slightly bent.

The next bit was a little complicated. Korra made sure to still her mind, letting in and out deep breaths to both circulate air through her circulatory system and warm her chakras.

A voice off to the side yelled “Coming!”

To the right of her vision, Korra immediately noticed a flying stone disk, about the size of a dinner plate, flying quickly across her eyesight. Taking one last deep breath, and exhaling the built-up air from her diaphragm, Korra jammed her arms against her side, glared at the disk, and unleashed a combustion blast directly at it. The impact of the two created a massive explosion, sending out shockwaves through the air that Korra could feel from her spot on the ground around 20 meters away. The shattered remains of the now broken saucer fell to the ground, which Korra watched as she relaxed and wiped the sweat that had formed on her forehead. 

She was satisfied with the result. It hadn’t been long ago that Korra had been unable to achieve the level of accuracy that she had just demonstrated. Combustion bending was an extremely dangerous and rare ability, requiring intense focus and concentration, along with a great deal of mental fortitude and physical strength. It was the last tool she had tackled in her growth as the Avatar, and it was definitely the most deadly. When the third eye tattoo was finally placed on her light chakra in the middle of her forehead, Korra had at first struggled with the accuracy of her blasts. Only through intense training and practice did she become able to use it accurately, and while maintaining rigorous physical activity to boot.

Korra was currently wearing her training outfit, a baggy pair of grey sweats with a blue skin-tight tank top. Her hair, after she had cut it several years ago, was still short, which made it easy to accomplish the acrobatic martial arts without blocking her vision. On her left arm was a traditional water tribe armband, decorated with her mark that she had earned when she completed her ice dodging ritual. It did very little to conceal the muscular, lean biceps she sported. In fact, Korra’s incredible athleticism was pretty self-evident no matter where you looked. A six-pack was visible underneath her shirt, firm, well-defined shoulders connected to her muscular neck and well-sculpted upper body. Korra was proud of her appearance. She appreciated the physicality of it, how she didn’t appear to be just some porcelain doll. Her mix of curves and hard edges that she worked nonstop for put something tangible to her effort. It certainly wasn't the traditional beauty standard for women, but Korra couldn’t care less.

“Head’s up.”

Korra turned to see Lin Beifong throwing a water bottle at her. She calmly reached out and caught it, and sat down on a step that led to the outdoor training area, all before taking a hearty chug. The water felt good; it was still cool, and Korra dumped a little of it on her head to drive away the heat.

Lin joined her on the step.

“That looked good, kid,” she said with a rare smile.

Lin had been the one to launch the chunk of Earth into the sky, as she was currently overseeing(more like just helping out with) Korra’s harsh training. Lin was always impressed with Korra’s growth. When she had first helped the girl with her bending and taekwondo practice, it seemed the girl soaked up every little tip, every movement that Lin offered to her. Despite the fact that Lin herself didn’t practice the martial art focused on more flexible kicks(she utilized karate, a better fit for her rock-solid Earth bending), Korra was always attentive and respectful to her, patiently paying attention to the instruction that probably wasn’t the greatest. She used her eyes, her ears, and her mind, to quickly grow beyond every expectation set on her, and reached higher and higher into her goals.

The girl was a determined hard worker, and it really was a damned good feeling to help spark her improvement.

Taking a break from drinking, Korra replied “Thanks, mom.”

When Korra was 3, her parents died. Or at least she thought they did. Korra couldn’t really know. Lin, and her girlfriend at the time, Kya, found her on their doorstep one night. There was no note, nothing to indicate why this little child had been left to the two women. At the time, Lin could remember wanting to put Korra in the childcare system. It still hurts to think that she could have missed the girl growing up into such an inspiring figure because of that one foolish decision, but she was glad Kya convinced her otherwise. She didn’t know who they were, but Korra’s parents missed out on one of the greatest joys in Lin’s life.

Imagine both of their surprises when they learned that she was capable of bending all 4 elements, making her the current incarnation of the Avatar.

At the young age of 4, Korra was bending Earth, water, and fire, something a little unprecedented even for Avatars. Most, from what Kya told Lin (as her dad was the previous Avatar), didn’t begin to learn anything besides their base element until they turned sixteen, and that even her father had been an anomaly mastering all four at twelve. And yet out of nowhere, Korra started flinging mini fireballs and stones around the house before she had even started to read.

The White Lotus, an organization committed to preventing acts of terrorism against benders and non-benders alike, and protecting the people of the world, was immediately notified of her existence. They strongly wanted to take Korra into their own care, or rather, turn her into a weapon, which both Kya and Lin strongly objected to. Korra’s adoptive parents’ insistence, along with both of their high statuses, enabled them to protect Korra from a childhood of merciless violence.

By no means did this mean that Korra slacked off, however. Lin was always an advocate for hard work and made sure to instill it in her daughter from a young age. This applied to pretty much anything, from academics(she was homeschooled) to her martial arts and bending practice. Korra, even at a young age, had grown to relish being studious, and the painstaking nature of being diligent with her training. Taekwondo, her signature fighting style, was picked up from the internet, where she watched videos of professionals and emulated it by herself. She’d take the initiative, running and lifting extra, getting more reps in the gym, working her bending finesse and strength, and studying when she had free time. Korra had almost no friends, partially as a result of being homeschooled, but the girl rarely if ever complained, and used whatever leftover time to focus on growing stronger. It was honestly astonishing, even to Lin, who had thought that she herself was assiduous. Kya always worried for her daughter; worried that her lack of socializing with other kids her age would leave her awkward forever, worried that she pushed herself too hard, worried that she would burn out as a result of non-stop growth. But the girl broke all the concerns about her, surpassing whatever Kya and Lin had ever hoped their daughter would be able to accomplish.

She was so smart. So capable. So strong. And Kya and Lin were damn proud. Even if Lin sometimes struggled to admit it.

Korra’s breath had long since settled, and she smiled brightly to the older woman on her left, before returning her gaze to the ground in front of her, evidently lost in thought.

“I thought the triple kick could have used a little more speed, and when I came down from the backflip, I wasn't totally settled.” Korra was quick to point out her own flaws, which was an essential part of her industrialism. She could immediately recognize and work to improve the tiniest detail that Lin hadn’t even noticed.

“But the combustion target practice felt really good. Even without the Avatar state, I probably could have hit another two or three with the time I had leftover, and my release and power felt really in tune.”

Lin could only nod her head and gaze fondly at her daughter. She was no fire bender and even less of a combustion bender. She just knew the explosion Korra had caused could probably bring down a building, and she had hit a small moving target that Lin knew experienced metal benders would struggle with. Lin had no doubts that with the level of concentration combustion bending required, Korra would be able to hit the same disk launched even further away with her other bending disciplines.

That was the kind of Avatar Korra was. Capable beyond belief. Constantly working to improve. A never-ending cycle that produced the results Lin was able to see first-hand today.

“Do you know what’s for dinner tonight, mom?” Korra asked.

“Not sure,” Line replied. “Your mom is cooking, so it’s probably going to be good. Better go wash off before we eat.”

Korra, despite not dedicating her childhood to the White Lotus, still ended up working with them as she grew older. She officially joined once she turned fifteen, as she told both her parents that she was ready, and started running combat missions with the security forces of the group. It definitely matured her. Korra knew she would never have an “ordinary” lifestyle as the Avatar. She held too much power, and there came a certain responsibility with that power that Korra felt deeply. It wasn’t like she was required to join the White Lotus, but in Korra’s mind, it was better to make a difference with her talent than to squander it. Her morals, protection for those who needed it, and acting with kindness towards those who deserved it, were what Korra was brought up with, and she knew the White Lotus would give her a good opportunity to do what she felt was right.

She picked up a lot from some of the older benders and fighters. They were the ones who helped her really grow her elemental sub-disciplines. Lava, lighting, metal, ice, healing, combustion, and even blood bending(which she hated, and vowed to herself never to use unless absolutely necessary). Korra pushed the limits of what it meant to be the Avatar, master of the four elements. Her knowledge of martial arts expanded, as did her technique. Being in a position to learn so much from individuals who had mastered their combat styles propelled her forward, and made her signature taekwondo even more adaptable than ever.

There were times when Korra’s life was really in danger, as fieldwork with the White Lotus was never a walk in the park, but her intense training and great instincts allowed her to make it through the rough patches. 

She had killed people. It was not something that ever came easy to her, as Kya had always instructed her that “all life is precious,” and Korra hated the feeling of taking another’s life, but she was able to reassure herself that the gangsters, terrorists, and criminals posed a threat to the public who wasn’t equipped like she was to deal with them.

Needless to say, she was talented. At seventeen, Korra was now a Captain and ran solo missions all the time. She was undoubtedly the White Lotus’s strongest warrior, as well as a brilliant tactician.

Lin and Kya always worried about her, so when she came home as she did now, they both made a huge deal out of it. Not that Korra minded. She loved it when Kya went above and beyond in her cooking, and she could never get enough of the delicious food she would make. Being home was great. Her own room, her own gym, her own parents, and no responsibilities were all pretty attractive features.

Korra stood up from the step and started: “I think I’ll go for a swim in the ocean quickly. I’ll meet you inside after I’m done. Don’t eat anything without me being there, alright?” Even though they were not blood-related, Korra and Lin had equally ravenous appetites, and she knew Lin wouldn’t hesitate to eat everything on the table without her there to defend it.

“Alright, alright, relax kid, I wouldn’t steal all the food away from you. So go quickly, before I change my mind,” Lin said as she groaned to her feet as well, before shaking her head and heading to the door.

Kya and Lin’s house was outside of Republic City, as Lin worked there as the chief of police, and Kya as a doctor. It wasn’t large, despite Korra’s abnormally large salary easily being able to pay for something larger, but it was home. It was the place Korra had first entered her parent’s family. It was also very close to the ocean. Which Korra loved.

She popped the wings on her bow staff glider, which had been resting on the ground next to the now still punching bag. Launching herself into the sky with a blast of fire from her feet, she air bent to keep herself soaring, and made her way to her favorite cliff, overlooking crashing waves below. As the sunset, a cacophony of reds and pinks painted the sky. The ocean was loud, but Korra loved it. Standing there, arms spread, blue eyes closed, the wind blowing her hair everywhere, Korra felt free, felt the immeasurable tug of the water calling to her. Being Water Tribe, no matter how much time she spent away from her roots, or practicing the other elements, water always felt like home to her. It was her lighthouse, signaling that everything was going to be okay.

With a whoop, Korra jumped, rushing towards the depths below.

4 minutes later, Korra was bursting back to the clifftop with a jet of water, and drying herself by bending the drops out of her clothes and hair. It couldn’t quite remove the salty smell from her skin, but Korra couldn’t care less. She had missed the ocean, missed smelling like the ocean. Working with the White Lotus was satisfying, but on her last deployment, she had been in the middle of the Earth Kingdom working on a drug trafficking case, and this, unfortunately, meant she was unable to easily visit the sea as she could at home. Definitely one of the big things Korra disliked about working in the field. But she was home now, and she was going to take full advantage of her proximity to the water.

Kicking the glider back into her hand, she headed back for home.

Back at the house, Korra jogged up a flight of stairs and to her room, dropping off her staff and grabbing her phone. She was a little sore from the intense exercise of the day, but it wasn’t the worst she’d ever felt, and she promised herself that she would stretch after dinner.

Walking into the dining room, she greeted both of her parents, who were already at the dinner table. “Hey, guys.”

Kya really had gone all out. It seemed like there was homemade pasta, with a side of sea prune stew that she knew Korra loved. Pretty perfect, if you asked Korra.

“Hi, honey.” “Kid.” Two different styles of greeting floated back to her, as she grabbed a fork and plate, and while sitting setting herself down in her chair, helped herself to a heaping pile of pasta, followed by a large bowl of the stew.

Before Korra could stuff her mouth full of food, Kya asked her with a warm smile “How was your training Korra?”

Korra responded as quickly as she could in her eagerness to get started, the words almost spilling out of her mouth “Really good mom. I really appreciate having mom help me with my combustion bending practice. It’s not really the same if I have to do it myself.” Grabbing a huge breath of air, Korra immediately started to shovel food inside her.

Chuckling, Kya grinned. “That's good honey.” After a quick pause. “Remember to chew, and at least slow down a little bit.”

Korra was unresponsive but slowed down her onslaught of the pasta a tiny bit.

Lin was smiling as well, as she also started to wolf down the delicious food prepared by her beautiful wife. Nothing beats her cooking, and Lin had to make sure that she at least didn’t finish too far behind Korra so that she couldn’t take the leftovers.

The rest of dinner was filled with loving small talk, about each other's day, some of Korra’s lighter stories from her time with the White Lotus, and her mom’s plans for the week.

By the time the conversation was finished, so was the food.

Kya laughed lightly “It almost looks like I didn’t cook anything, you pigs.”

Korra pouted “I am vacuum. I can eat cleanly.”

Lin jested back “I don’t know about the vacuums you use, but I’m pretty sure ours would explode if you stuffed that much food into it.”

Laughs echoed throughout the dining room.

Korra suddenly got quiet. She had been meaning to tell her parents this all day, but never got around to it, and just figured it would be easier to catch both of them together at dinner. 

“Ah… so, um, just wanted to tell you guys that Colonel Zuko is giving me an extended break from work. And by extended, I mean, won’t be on active duty for a couple of years extended. I still might have to come in if a situation requires it, but yeah, I’ve got a ton more time suddenly. He said it was largely due to the lack of activity of Red Lotus splinter cells, and diminished Equalist movements, and honestly, I kind of agree.”

Both Kya and Lin were surprised by this. Both of them wanted their girl to be home, but they just couldn’t see the White Lotus giving Korra the kind of break they thought she was talking about. It seemed a little unnatural, given how important Korra was to their combat forces, and how adamant they were to have her collaboration, that they would just give her this time off. They both shot each other a sideways glance from the corner of their eyes, before turning to their daughter with smiles on their faces.

Kya spoke first “That’s good honey. You know how much we enjoy having you at home, and how we dislike you risking your life as much as you do.”

Lin picked it up “But are you sure they are just going to let you have a break? You are very important to them, and you’re so incredibly talented, so your mom and I are just a little confused by the whole situation.”

Korra could sense the uneasiness in both her parents' voices. 

She remembered the conversation she had had with Colonel Zuko the previous day before she returned home. Korra and he had a good relationship, given his friendship with the previous Avatar, and she liked him a lot more than some of the other heads of the organization. Zuko was genuinely relieved to hear that Korra was getting time away from her work with the White Lotus, as no teenager should have to deal with the amount of stress, violence, and heaviness for a long time like Korra had been. He knew the girl had a good head on her shoulders, and that she carried out her duty extremely well and without complaint, but he was still glad that Korra had an opportunity to go home.

Before she left his office, he snuck in the idea that had been in his head since he heard the news. “Korra, have you considered going to school?” 

The question came out of nowhere, and Korra stopped where she stood, not really ready to answer it.

Zuko continued “Not that you need anything they can teach you, spirits, I know how capable you are. Nah, I’m just wondering if you’d like to be able to make some friends, meet some new people, experience something out of the life you’ve lived so far. I think it could really be good for you. Aang and I met when I was 16, and while I hadn’t exactly lived a sheltered life, I was glad I was able to be friends with a guy like him. Just thinking aloud here, but I think you would appreciate something like that as well.”

It wasn’t as if Korra had never had the thought of going to an academy. Pretty much every kid who had ever been homeschooled wondered what going to a school full of people would be like. Korra actually probably was more curious than most, considering her secluded upbringing meant she rarely interacted with kids her own age. The people she could call closest to friends were members of the White Lotus, who she had bonded with over violence and were an average of 10 years older than her. 

School would definitely be something new for Korra and given she now had a ton of time on her hands, it might not be such a bad idea.

As she flew home on her glider, thoughts of what that experience would be like and whether or not she would enjoy it filled her head.

And here she was, explaining to her parents that because of her long break, she wanted to try something new and attend a school, if only for a couple of years. She really hoped it wouldn’t upset them. Korra knew how much her moms cared about her, and she was worried that if she went to an academy and continued to spend time away from them, it would be upsetting.

So she went about telling them about it as calmly as possible.

“The order came down from up top. All those big whigs thanked me for the sacrifices I’ve made for the White Lotus in the past couple of years, which almost sounded like they were firing me, but nah, they just gave me extended leave. Zuko seemed happy when he told me about it, so I’m fairly confident there's no motive behind it.”

Korra took a moment to pause and collect her thoughts.

“And.. um, he brought up something that I wanted to talk with you both about. He asked if I ever considered going to school. And, um… yah, I have thought about it before. I love you both so much, and I’d do pretty much anything for you, but I never really got a chance to meet kids my own age. I just thought it might be a good experience, but I really value both of your opinions, so if you want me to stay home, I definitely will.”

Korra wasn’t exactly looking at the floor, but she was definitely nervous to hear what her moms would have to say about her proposal. She at least hoped they would take it well, even if they said no.

Kya, who up till this point had her lips pursed, was now beaming at her. She calmly shook her charcoal hair, before saying “Korra, honey, did you think we were going to be mad at you for bringing this up?”

Korra grinned a little sheepishly. “Ah, yah, a little. I’ve kinda spent my whole life with you guys, and I know you like having me around the home.”

Lin was grinning now too. “Kid, we are always gonna support you, no matter what you decide to do. We love you a lot, right honey,” she said, elbowing Kya before continuing. “Anyways, yeah, I’ve always wanted you to stretch your wings a little bit ya know, meet some new people, other than the White Lotus, of course. I had a sister growing up, and even if I hated her guts at the time, I could at least talk to somebody my own age. I agree with Zuko, for maybe the first time in forever. School would be good for you kid.”

Kya smiled at her wife. “Korra, if you want to go to school, then your mom and I will try our damned hardest to not miss you as much as I know we will.”

Korra’s facial expression had really brightened at this point. Her parents were supporting her. They weren’t upset about her wanting to spend time away from home.

Lin leaned back in her chair. “I’m surprised you never brought up something like this before. You’ve got a really outgoing personality kid, so it just kinda seemed like you would have gotten cooped up spending so much time with your old parents.”

Korra shook her head. “Nah, I could never get tired of you guys. Plus, if I left, then I wouldn’t be able to eat mom’s cooking, and that would be a tragedy.”

Laughing now, Lin exclaimed, “That’s for damn sure!”

They were all laughing their heads off, and Korra was filled with a sense of satisfaction, both for the anticipation of attending a school and meeting some new people, but also that she had the most amazing parents who were always going to support and push her in the right direction.


	2. Exams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is slightly more technical than the previous one, and a good deal longer. I would really appreciate any input you guys have for me to improve my writing style for the action in this story. I'm always open to outside opinions, and this is my first time writing something so heavily steeped in combat.
> 
> (P.S. I'm going to try and keep up the frequent upload schedule, considering I'm on winter break from school now, but no promises)
> 
> Hope you enjoy

Bag in hand one hand and glider in the other, Korra dropped from the sky in front of a rather tall, industrial-looking building. She set her bag on the sidewalk to free her hand in order to reach in her pocket and grab out her phone. Pulled up was the email from Colonel Zuko, denoting the address of the apartment the White Lotus had rented for her. 

Crazy, right? Korra, after letting her parents know her to wish to attend school, got in contact with her superior at the White Lotus, who then utilized the large pool of funds to secure her housing very close to the academy. Korra had at first objected, as the academy wasn’t further than a 20-minute glider ride to her house, but her parents convinced her to accept it, saying Korra would appreciate being a lot closer.

Speaking of which, Korra really hadn’t the second idea of what schools even existed in Republic City or what was actually accomplished there besides blanket learning. She had built up this romanticized image of rows and rows of lockers, with large classrooms of diverse people, all sitting rapt at attention to the lecture of the teacher, but how could she know? Luckily, both Kya and Lin were extremely helpful and immediately recognized there was pretty much only one school that could even stand to measure Korra’s ability.

Republic City Academy.

It was a highschool founded around the time the multinational city was established. So not an incredibly long time, but enough to amass quite a reputation. In simple terms, it was a school for the gifted. RCA was focused on producing outstanding young adults who would go on to be capable fighters, innovators, academics, and pretty much every other field in existence, or at least that was what Korra read on their brochure. Kya had told her in an off-handed comment a while ago that Tenzin, her younger brother was the current headmaster. She liked to make fun of him (apparently, he was a stickler for rules) but his position at the academy was no joke. It was the goal of most kids in the city to attend, as RCA pretty much guaranteed you a solid future upon graduation, no matter what you wanted to do with your life. The name held a certain prestige, as its long history of producing talented benders and experts in various academic disciplines spoke volumes to the public.

Korra, at several points in her career with the White Lotus, had met with combat specialists fresh out of RCA and eager to show the world their skill. They definitely weren’t talentless, but Korra had always thought they talked too much and weren’t anything special(Korra, of course, was blessed with some of the greatest bending teachers the city had to offer, so this came as no surprise to her parents).

Tenzin was definitely surprised when he heard Kya’s request to allow Korra to enroll at RCA. He was well aware of the Avatar (would have been kinda hard to miss at all their family get-togethers), but he and Korra never had much of an interaction. 

Korra had actually picked up air bending relatively early. While it was the one element that went against her temperament, Korra was capable of pretty much anything when she set her mind to it. She built her own air bending gates, practiced meditation whenever she had the chance and was able to emulate the freedom that came with air bending without a master. She could remember the long nights sitting cross-legged in her room, or at her cliff, reflecting inwards. It was a remarkable feat, to be able to learn by herself, as there were very few self-taught benders who were successful enough to call themselves talented. Anyways, Tenzin had felt like Korra’s growth by herself was exemplary, and pretty much left her to her own study, besides a few pointers whenever she was stuck. Air bending actually worked fairly well with Korra’s mobile and fluid taekwondo, and Tenzin remembered seeing a large number of similarities in its movements with tai chi. Korra had synthesized the most freeing elements into something that could be controlled and was practical, allowing her to move around with relative ease in a fight. It was a bit awe-inspiring even for Tenzin, who was taught under his father, the previous Avatar.

Tenzin had also heard a lot about the Avatar’s reputation. While she may have kept her identity and position from the eyes of the public, being the headmaster of a school that continued to funnel high achieving students into the White Lotus meant he was privy to a decent amount of information, and Kya was always quick to brag about her daughter. Strong, capable, brilliant, hard-working, genius: all of these were probably understatements to describe Korra as far as he could see, which was why he was slightly confused as to why Korra wanted to be taught at his school, where the level of instruction was lower than what Korra was used to. It took a message from Zuko to set the record straight, and Tenzin was happy to comply with his sister and the White Lotus.

Zuko, and the rest of the White Lotus, actually wanted Korra to continue to keep her identity as the Avatar and a White Lotus agent secret. It would pose too many security risks, both to her and the school itself if the public (more specifically the Equalists or the Red Lotus) learned that she was attending the Academy. Korra was happy to comply, as she really didn’t want people to formulate a preconceived notion of what she was like just because of her position.

Blending in would be nice. It meant she would be able to meet some genuine people who got to know the real Korra, not the all-powerful Avatar who could quite literally bring the world to her heel if she wanted.

Korra, standing on the sidewalk after identifying that the building in front of her was actually the apartment complex that she was supposed to be staying at, reached up and scratched the headband around her forehead. Besides the general “keep the fact that you are the Avatar secret,” Kya, Lin, and Korra all agreed walking into the high school with her combustion bending third eye tattoo visible for all the students and teachers was probably not the smartest idea. While she had been packing her bag, Kya walked into the room with a handmade light blue bandana, which she said was from both her and Lin. Korra profusely thanked her. It was a simple gift, but Korra could tell how much time Kya had spent on it. There were intricate Southern Water Tribe patterns decorating the front and back, and Korra loved it.

She could see it getting a little uncomfortable to wear all the time, but at the very least she loved the way it looked, the way it kept the hair out of her face, and the way that it carried a piece of her home with her everywhere she went.

“Might as well check the place out before I head to the examination area,” Korra said as she picked her bag back up and walked through the doors of the building, into the lobby, and up multiple flights of stairs until she reached a white door that read her apartment number. Korra reached back into her pocket and grabbed the key card that Zuko had mailed to her several days ago, before holding it up to the lock on the door handle. Another push and Korra stepped into the living room of her home away from home.

The first thing she noticed was the size. The room she was standing in was huge. Way bigger than what she had been expecting, or what she was used to. There was a kitchen area in the corner to her right, sectioned off from the wider area by a marble counter. There was a white couch, next to a pair of grey lounge chairs situated against the wall, facing a widescreen T.V. To her left, a floor to ceiling window left her with a wide view of the city. She wasn’t on the highest floor in her building, but she could still gaze out and see most of the Republic City skyline. It certainly wasn't the cliff by her parent’s house, but the view was impressive nonetheless.

There was a hallway off to the side of the room, leading to what Korra could only assume were the bedroom and bathroom. Before checking them out, Korra took off her shoes, leaving her wrapped feet to pad across the hardwood floor of the apartment, dropped her bag and staff by the door, and flopped down on the couch. Even the furniture seemed expensive, along with everything else in the room. She sighed, thinking that she could probably fall asleep right then and there if she didn’t have to get up in twenty minutes to make her way over to RCA.

At least she didn’t hate the apartment. It felt like an extremely comfortable place to live, and given how much Korra hated the mornings, its proximity to the school was going to be greatly appreciated.

Gazing up at the ceiling, Korra mused on whether or not she wanted the Academy to be time-consuming or not. Given that Korra had spent most of her life working as hard as possible, pretty much non-stop training or studying, having too much free time on her hands would be difficult. She assumed she could probably continue her training outside of school, but she’d done that for so long now, she wondered if it was really the best use of her time away from the White Lotus.

Speaking aloud to herself “I guess I’ll figure it out when it comes to it.”

At this point, Korra decided it was finally time to get up and head over to RCA. For students looking to transfer into the school, there were two separate examinations required: a physical and a studies test. They were exactly what they sounded like. The physical, Kya had explained to her, was a one on one simulated combat experience with an instructor from the school. She’d be graded on multiple different criteria, so it was best to just perform to the best of her abilities. Same with the studies test. Korra felt that that one would be a little more straightforward. Just a three-hour exam, testing a variety of different subjects including math, science, English, and bending history. Nothing too complicated, Korra expected. Kya also made sure to tell Korra that returning students only had to take the studies exam at the start of every school year, as the teachers were pretty much already familiar with their bending or martial arts skill. 

Even though Tenzin already knew Korra’s skill level would easily pass both trials, in an effort to remove suspicions of favoritism, still required Korra to take them. It didn’t bother her that much, as it gave her an opportunity to see the level of combat skills of her teachers and fellow students.

She took a quick glance into the bedroom and bathroom (nothing special, just as large as the rest of the apartment), before putting her shoes back on. She opted to leave her staff at home, as it really was seen as a traditional air bending tool, and not something Korra wanted to be associated with while at school. Shutting the door behind her as she stepped into the hallway, Korra began the trip to RCA.

The school really was quite close, Korra remarked on, as she walked the five-minute walk to the address she had memorized. Korra wondered how expensive an apartment so close to the hub of Republic City had cost the White Lotus. Probably a lot. Korra might have been able to afford it on her salary, but it was definitely nice that they had gone ahead and gotten it for her. The trip to the school was pretty uneventful. There were a couple of stores along the way, and Korra made sure to memorize the location of the supermarket, along with what looked to be a really good noodle stop. Always good to know that kind of information when staying in a new place.

When she finally reached the school, it was 10 minutes before she was supposed to start her physical. Nothing to be stressed about, she hoped, but at the same time, she was really glad she had taken the time to look at a map of the campus before coming.

She stood in front of a very impressive metal gate, allowing entrance to the school through the fence that surrounded the entire grounds. There were a few other students, most of which seemed to be first years, around her. They all seemed to be on their way to the physical exam as well, and some walked in groups excited chatting. Korra could pick up some of their conversations as she joined the flow of students through the gate and towards an outdoor arena in the distance.

“I’m so nervous. This is like the biggest moment I’ve had to prepare for in my entire life.”

“Chill out homie, we’re gonna be fine, it's gonna be a piece of cake.”

“Gosh, did I remember everything? Let me see…”

“Spirits, the campus is beautiful. I really hope I get in.”

“Ayyyy, look who it is. Yo! Ishin!”

Korra observed that there seemed to be a variety of different ethnic groups present. She saw the greens of the Earth Kingdom, reds of the Fire Nation, blues of the Water Tribes, even a couple of red and orange air nation uniforms. It seemed the school really attracted students from all over. The varying reactions ranging from nervousness to joy, to a quiet serenity, really made Korra laugh on the inside. She hadn’t even met any of these people yet, and they already seemed more normal than the other soldiers she interacted with within the White Lotus. They wore more human emotions, carried themselves without the weight of violence, laughed and loved, and learned. This was what she had been missing.

The amphitheater where the test was being administered was large, large enough to hold at least three thousand people. There were steps carved 360 degrees around a fifty-meter circle pool of water. Above the water was a classic pro-bending platform: roughly a twenty by twenty meter square with groves carrying water and stone disks running through it symmetrically.

Korra was impressed. The facilities here at RCA were obviously top-notch. Pro-bending was a global phenomenon, and Korra, in her experiences with the White Lotus, enjoyed the sport, as both a spectator and a participant. Traditionally, the sport consisted of two teams of three benders, each starting on opposite sides of an arena just like the one below. Using pretty much whatever non-fatal methods the athletes could think of, each team's goal was to knock the players of the enemy team off the edge of the square. This meant martial arts, bending, weapons that had been approved, pretty much anything went. Referees were usually required, to ensure that a certain level of rule-following happened and brutality was kept to a minimum. Games would be best of five rounds, and they were usually fast-paced and exhilarating. Korra paid a bit of attention to the professional scene, being in an organization that pretty much consisted only of benders obsessed with the sport, but she kept busy enough that she never really considered trying out going pro herself. Lin would always chuckle and tell her it wouldn’t be fair.

Korra and the rest of the kids all made their way to a seat closer to the front of the area as instructed by several teachers who seemed to be there to administer the test. With everybody seated, Korra could more accurately tell the number of students here. It seemed to be upwards of three hundred, which seemed quite high to Korra until she realized that pretty much every kid in Republic City would be gunning for a chance to learn at RCA and that the number was actually rather low all things considered. 

Korra found herself sitting between who she assumed was an Earth bender boy and a fire bender girl. Perhaps because of the air of mystery surrounding Korra, the two of them spared her a single glance before turning to their friends who joined them to their other side. Korra didn’t have time to strike up a conversation with them either, because at that moment she saw a familiar face.

“Hey! Jin!” She called out.

A younger girl in air nation robes looked up to the sound of someone calling her name, recognized Korra, and immediately smiled, before making her way up some steps to join Korra’s side.

“Hi, Korra!” Jinora said excitedly. “I haven't seen you in forever. How have you been?”

Korra giggled at the girl's enthusiasm. “I’ve been good, Jin. Busy. I had no idea you were applying here as well.”

Jinora smiled again. “Yup, finally ready to tackle life here at the Academy. I was really surprised when I heard you wanted to transfer in. Didn’t think you would ever want to come to school, but I’m really glad you're here.”

Jinora, Tenzin’s daughter, had met Korra at a family holiday in the Southern Water Tribe, when Tenzin, Kya, and their oldest brother Bumi all met their mom, Katara, for the Spirit Festival. Jinora and Korra had immediately gotten along well with each other. Jinora was studious, but once Korra got to know her she realized the girl had a fun-loving side under all the knowledge she packed into her brain. Korra really enjoyed her company, and spending time with her and her chaotic brother and sister made every trip down to the frigid South fun. It had been at least a year since Korra had seen Jinora last, and she was feeling a little guilty for not having come to say hi sooner. 

Jinora was also familiar with Korra’s role as the Avatar, and her position in the White Lotus and Korra could only assume that Tenzin had briefed her beforehand not to say anything in front of the other students.

“I’ve got some time off from work, so I figured it would be good to meet some people my own age, ya know? I wanna see how it goes.”

“I’m happy for you Korra,” Jinora responded. “I think you are really going to like it here.”

The two girls' conversation stopped, and died with the rest of the low murmurings of the crows, as a muscular man walked across a suspended bridge to the center of the pro-bending platform. Korra studied him. From his clothing and facial features, she guessed he was Water Tribe, although she couldn’t know which one until she saw him actually bending. The two different tribes had distinctly different martial arts styles ingrained in their movements, and while most water benders from the Tribes practiced Kung Fu, there was a good deal of variances in stance and form.

The man stopped once he reached the middle of the square, before speaking loudly enough so that the auditorium could hear him.

“Hello, potential Republic City Academy students. I’m one of the combat instructors for the school, and I will be leading the exam here today. Either you are here to apply as a freshman, or are transferring in. Either way, you will all be required to take this portion of the entrance test. When I call your name, please enter the arena. You will then attempt to knock me off the edge of the platform, so pretty much just pro-bending. I’m not just going to be standing still though, so be prepared to defend against anything I throw at you. You can use whatever you want, bending, martial arts, whatever, although your score will depend on how efficient, and effective you are, along with how long you last before I am able to push you into the water. That’s about it. Any questions?”

Seeing how no one raised their hands. The man smiled before turning to another teacher standing at the entrance to the arena and nodding. The first name was called.

Korra was excited. She had no experience watching other kids like her fighting beside the occasional spar with Jinora, so she was excited to see their ability.

The first student to go was a shortish boy wearing grey sweatpants and a green t-shirt. Korra could tell he was nervous, just from the way he carried himself, as his shoulders were curved inwards, and he appeared to be repeating some sort of mantra under his breath. Walking out to the platform, he faced the instructor standing in the middle.

Korra could hear the instructor say “Are you ready?” to which the kid nodded. 

“Go whenever.”

Finally, the kid started to move. He was an Earth bender, and from what Korra could see so far, he was using karate to launch the stone disks out of the floor and at the teacher. Korra inwardly grimaced. His movements were painfully slow and telegraphed, seemingly unpracticed and untested to her well-trained eyes. She watched as the instructor calmly sidestepped each projectile thrown at him, before running at the boy who was standing stationary after his initial attack. Reacting quite slowly, the student took a few steps backward in an attempt to create some distance, but the man was moving too quickly. He stepped into striking range of the kid before sending a straight right-handed punch at his chest. The Earth bender attempted to block with a downwards swipe of his left arm, but it was poorly executed, and the bunch still grazed his upper body, knocking him back a few more steps. Korra was quick to notice another major flaw in the students fighting style. He was incapable of synthesizing his martial arts with his bending. It took him too long from transitioning between throwing and defending, and he didn’t make use of his Earth bending in his blocks. He seemed uncoordinated and unsure of his movements, and Korra realized that maybe she had set the bar for high school students a little too high. 

The fight on the pro-bending platform was coming to a close. The kid tried one last-ditch kick to try to knock the instructor off-balance, but the water bender easily dodged to the side, grabbed his upper thigh, and dropped the student to the floor. Keeping his hold on the leg, he proceeded to throw the Earth bender off the edge of the square and into the water below. Overall the fight had only lasted twenty seconds or so.

Korra had expected there to be silence after such a dominating performance, but to her surprise, the other students were clapping excitedly. She even heard a few remarks on the kid, who was now being fished out of the water by a teacher, saying his fighting skill was impressive.

Impressive?

Korra honestly had thought the entire fight was unimpressive. The water bending instructor seemed confident in his moves, and certainly dispatched the inexperienced Earth bender, but to Korra, he too was full of holes. His kung fu was a little too stiff, his punches overextended, and while she hadn’t seen his bending, she knew he would be unable to take full advantage of it simply based on his non-bending form.

But apparently, to the other students, the fight had overall been at a high level.

The next name was called, and the entire process began again.

Korra was largely confused as to how RCA had picked up the reputation it had. The combatants here, from what Korra could tell, were not that skillful. She watched fire, earth, water, and air benders, and even non-benders with different weapons make poor usage of their differing martial arts styles, and not a single one had forced the instructor to bend the water running through the platform.

Korra herself was a little naive in her revelation. Of course, there was going to be no one who could even come close to Korra’s skill level here, at a freshman exam, when she had been practicing her fighting skills since she was a young girl, and had been utilizing them in real combat for over two years now. No one else had the instruction she did, from two of the best water and Earth benders on the planet, along with the myriad of excellent benders in the White Lotus combat force.

It would be shocking to see even one person here who could stack up to Korra’s discerning eye.

The exam continued on, as students one after another fell to the pool under the pro-bending platform. Korra had decided to make a list of the top fighters she had seen so far, and it was a mixing of freshmen with the few transfer students at the top. The whole event was a little boring to Korra.

Jinora’s name was called, and Korra made sure to shoot her a smile and a “good luck,” before she hopped down the stairs and across the bridge to join the instructor on the stage.

Korra was actually excited to see this. Jinora was no slouch, and under Tenzin’s capable instruction, was a skilled air bender who was capable of fluid movements and skillful offense and defense. Tai Chi wasn’t usually thought of as a destructive martial art style, but when utilized correctly by a properly trained air bender, it was capable of many things unachievable by other more rigid styles of fighting.

The instructor obviously seemed to recognize Jinora, and immediately dropped into a stance, arms slanted in front of him and knees bent, that had not been seen that day. Jinora must have quite the reputation, as the teacher seemed to be taking this fight quite seriously.

Jinora started off on offense, twirling her arms to fling a gust of wind at the instructor. He carefully dodged sideways and looked as if he was preparing to send a blast of water back at the younger girl, but quickly had to drop to the ground as Jinora had swung a horizontal slash of wind following the initial spiral. Korra was quite proud. It took a great deal of skill to conceal the two attacks that followed each other simultaneously, and it took a really talented fighter to be able to dodge. Jinora was back in her neutral, hand up in front of her, looking calmly down at the instructor.

Smiling now, the instructor firmly pushed up with both hands and feet, jumping upright. It was his turn to attack. Swinging both hands low and back up across his chest, he sent two tendrils of water flying towards Jinora. Keeping the momentum on his side, he followed the water closely, trying to close the distance between the two that an air bender would definitely take advantage of. Jinora gracefully dodged out of the way and prepared to meet the instructor’s rush. The two clashed together, with the teacher throwing a downwards chop with his hand coated in ice, and Jinora dropping into a crouch and throwing a punch of air to meet his arm. The collision of the two drove both backward a few feet, where they each quickly caught a breath. Korra could read from Jinora’s facial expression that she had realized that there was no chance she would be able to win in a head-on assault with the older and stronger water bender, so when the instructor launch off the ground with a flying kick, she swiftly dashed away with a gust of air from her feet, all before sending a blast of wind with a smooth chop across her body. The instructor dodged and continued to pressure Jinora. Korra was actually very impressed with his ingenuity. The man had water congealed around his ankles and was using it to propel himself forwards at greater speeds that would be capable of pure athleticism.

The exam had turned into a battle of keep away. Jinora was determined to not allow the instructor to get in close, and continued to pressure him with constant gusts of wind. The teacher, conversely, was concentrating hard on dodging and narrowing the distance between the two. He would occasionally send a blade of ice at the girl, who would quickly react and either knock it out of the way with a wave of air or moved to the side to allow it to pass her.

Several minutes passed of this. Korra could tell Jinora was getting tired. No matter how hard she trained, a 15-year-old would struggle with endurance compared to a fully-capable adult. Sweat dotted her brow, and her chest heaved up and down, desperately grabbing for whatever air Jinora would give it. She had put up a very good fight, miles better than anyone else who had tested today had, but Korra knew she was going to be unsuccessful in knocking the water bender off the edge.

And the result Korra had guessed happened 10 seconds later. Jinora, attempting to elude a blast of water, sent a gust of window out of her right leg, but ended up twisting her ankle, and falling to the floor. The water bender was quick to capitalize, sending a second wave of water to push the girl off the end and into the pool below. 

Korra cheered loudly with the rest of the arena at the dominant performance Jinora had just given them. She was leagues above the rest of the fighters, and the crowd was glad to have seen the awe-inspiring fight between two skilled benders and martial artists. The tone of the spectators seemed to indicate that there wasn’t going to be anything like that for the rest of the day.

Korra chuckled a little bit at that. She wasn’t cocky, and she always knew overconfidence was a killer, but she was certainly sure of her abilities. That fight had certainly been impressive, and Korra had to give her hat to Jinora for being able to deal with someone who was probably double her age, but Korra was planning on outdoing her.

There were a few more competitors before Korra’s name was called. The buzz from Jinora’s test still hadn’t quite died down yet, and the other students seemed eager to see if anyone could excite them in the same way she had, and score higher on the exam.

By now, Jinora had joined her back in the stands. Korra immediately complimented her on the fight.

“That was a very impressive Jinora. You’ve definitely grown stronger since we last sparred,” she said with a smile on her face.

“Thanks, Korra!” Jinora positively beamed. “I’m a little upset that I didn’t win, but I know with a couple more years of training I’ll definitely be there.” Jinora was really grateful to receive Korra’s praise. The older girl was definitely a huge role model for her, and Jinora knew that with Korra’s strength, any sort of compliment was a huge deal.

As Korra’s name was finally called, Jinora whispered to her as she moved to make her way to the steps

“Go easy on him. He’s really a nice guy, and I’m sure he and dad would prefer it if you didn’t break anything.”

Korra turned her head and grinned. “I’ll try my best.”

She took her shoes off, exposing her wrapped feet and ankles, and left them behind for Jinora to watch, before heading down the stairs.

The Avatar had to admit, walking down in front of the large crowd was really nerve-racking. At most, Korra had to stand in front of fifty or so people when she received a commemoration for her actions in the White Lotus, and the number of gazes currently on her was a little uncomfortable. She nodded absentmindedly to the teacher who had been calling out names and walked out to join the instructor on the platform.

He had now been able to catch his breath after his lengthy fight with Jinora, and he turned his gaze to the new challenger with fresh eyes.

The man had come into today fully expecting not to be challenged. New students, even transfers, rarely could go toe to toe with the RCA combat instructors. No one was expected to achieve the goal of knocking him off the edge. Jinora had been a surprise, and he had cursed himself in his mind when he heard her name being called. He knew Tenzin’s daughter; he’d seen her practicing her martial arts and bending on school grounds many times beforehand and he knew she would be a tough opponent The fight had been challenging, nowhere near as simple as he would have liked it, but he was glad he got the win, even though it was against a freshman in high school.

Now the rest of the day would be boring, he moped after sweeping through several more inexperienced fire benders and Earth benders.

As the name Korra was called out, the man casually turned to face the entrance to the pro-bending platform. His routine was to gauge what type of fighter the student was before they began, depending on clothing, skin tone, name, and even stance. Knowing whether one’s opponent was a bender or a non-bender was a big deal in pro-bending, and it usually played a big role in professional teams’ strategy.

The girl in front of him was definitely Water Tribe. Tanned skin, brown hair, blue eyes, she fit the bill of a classic water bender. She wore blue armbands with Water Tribe symbols on them, and her headband was decorated with Water Tribe patterns. So if she was a bender, he was sure she was going to be slinging some water.

Something was off about her, he realized, as he looked more closely at her stance. The shortish girl was completely neutral. It almost looked like she was walking down the street, not into a fight. There was not a single tell for any of the martial arts he was familiar with. This was a first. Either the girl was unbelievably cocky, or she knew nothing about fighting. The instructor was sure of this.

And yet, why, when he looked into her eyes, did he feel like she was giggling at him. Her face was definitely neutral, betraying no expression, but the blue irises were filled with emotion, and this girl was definitely looking down on him.

‘Fine,’ he thought. ‘Time to put you in your place.’

The girl stopped at the opposite side of the stage. She finally dropped down into something that resembled a martial arts stance. It was curious to him, though. He couldn’t pinpoint which discipline it belonged to. Certainly, there were elements of karate, with a firm base, but her bent knees and light feet seemed to indicated something smoother was coming.

Whatever. Nothing he couldn’t deal with.

Seeing she was making no move towards him, he decided to be the one to start with pressure. He dashed towards the girl, keeping his arms at his side before launching into a flying kick.

There was no mistaking it now. The girl’s blue eyes showed she was having fun.

Something felt incredibly wrong. ‘This kid has seen what I’ve done to about two hundred other students and she thinks this kick is funny?’ dashed through his mind as he neared her.

Suddenly, just as he was about to reach her, Korra decided it was time to take action. Using her extended left hand, she swiftly rose to meet the outstretched leg hurtling towards her. Placing just enough pressure on his calve, she was able to send the kick careening above her body.

The man was now in an extremely precarious position. His balance was way off, one leg extended towards the sky and the other standing on tip-toes. He had expected the girl to either dodge or poorly deflect his kick downwards, and as a result, his momentum carried his body very close to the girl’s.

Korra kept going. Without bending any water to help her, she firmly planted her left leg and aimed a spinning kick with her right at the man’s exposed midsection. The kick was so fast, the man had barely even seen it before it landed with an unbelievable amount of force right on his rib cage. Korra had really tried to hold back, as breaking the teacher’s ribs was probably not the best way to make a first impression, but she certainly wanted to win this fight. 

The man instantly keeled over from the pain. Korra didn’t let up. Having finished a complete spin around her left leg axis, she continued her inertia and rocketed a straight leg towards the man’s center. He was in no position to defend himself, or even react, and the kick landed true. The instructor was sent flying, and Korra had positioned herself perfectly so that the amount of force she exerted was enough to send him spinning off the edge of the platform.

There was silence in the arena.

Korra relaxed her posture. The fight had ended extremely quickly. Most people had barely been able to keep up with Korra’s movements. Shock was everywhere. Never in their life, had any of them seen such an amazing spectacle before. Pretty much everyone had assumed the instructor was going to go undefeated today. Jinora had been the closest to actually reaching the goal, but it was clear that the teacher was stronger and more experienced than all of the first-year students. 

And yet here was a girl, who seemingly came out of nowhere, and knocked the test-giver off the edge in less than 10 seconds, and seemingly without bending and pure martial arts as well!

It was absurd. Half the students had their mouths open, and even some teachers blatantly wore their shock. A student had only beaten the instructor once or twice in the Academy’s history, and those losses were written off as lucky hits.

Korra, whoever this girl was, had swept the floor with the man.

Jinora was the only one who seemed unsurprised. She could almost feel the bruises she had picked up from the last time she and Korra had sparred, and Korra had knocked her down in a similar fashion.

Korra, on the other hand, was already thinking back to the fight. She had decided beforehand to restrict herself to only martial arts, no bending. It seemed like a fair handicap to give the man.

‘In the first kick, my foot came in at a slightly weird angle, which made my rotation a little slower than it could have been,’ Korra mused in her head.

By now, the spectators had begun to clap, which soon turned into a roar of cheering. The other students could barely contain themselves, having seen something that shook the foundation of what they believed a kid their age could accomplish. Korra was now a goal for many, a figure to look up to.

Just as Korra was rejoining Jinora in her seat, the instructor launched himself out of the pool of water. He gazed up at the stage, soaking wet, before shaking his head.

In his head, he knew he didn’t stand a chance. The girl hadn’t even really been trying. He had seen taekwondo before, it was fairly popular with fire benders and water benders, but he had never seen it as simply yet effectively as that girl had just done.

‘She has to be a master. With that level of skill, she’s probably qualified to teach here.’

Bending the remainder of the water out of his clothes, he climbed the stairs that lead back up to the entrance to the platform, ready to test the fifty or so remaining students.


	3. Coffee and Disbelief

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This took a while. It's a bit of a long chapter. I incorporated a good deal more dialogue into this one, which I struggle with a lot. Plus, I wanted to write from the POV of Asami, which was a bit more difficult than writing from Korra's in my opinion. I hope you all enjoy and leave comments to let me know what you think I could be doing better.
> 
> (Also, I've found it really enjoyable to write the reactions of Team Avatar to Korra's debut at RCA. Plus their speculations on her skills...Going to be fun to continue their disbelief in the coming chapters)

Asami sighed as she leaned back into the sofa situated in the living room of her dorm room. The lights were dimmed slightly, and with her head resting against the top of the couch, her eyes were fixed on the ceiling. Today had been a long day, and she was exhausted. She really just wanted to roll into some sweats and bed, but Mako, Bolin, Opal, Kuv, and Wu were coming over in a couple of minutes. She wistfully gazed at the comforting folded sheets, before shaking her head and sitting upright.

\-----------

As the start of the school year rolled around every year, Asami was always busy, and as her age increased so did her extra responsibilities that she needed to take care of.

She had forced herself to get up that morning to fit in a workout. While Asami wasn’t-not a morning person, she definitely preferred to sleep in, and the 6:30 wake up time killed her. She already missed being able to sleep in as she did during the summer. As her alarm clock had gone off, she groaned, rolled out of bed, into a pair of leggings and a sports bra, brushed her teeth, grabbed a random RCA pro-bending hoodie, and stumbled into the hallway where she met an equally tired Opal Beifong sporting a tray with two coffees. That woman was a savior. The two girls didn’t work out early often, but because today was examination day, they wouldn’t have time in the afternoon.

Returning students to RCA had arrived at their old dorm rooms throughout the previous week. Classes didn’t officially start for a few more days, but since everyone was required to take the studies test again each year, the campus was already fairly bustling. The air today was pretty urgent, filled with last-minute cramming and nervousness. Asami wasn’t worried about the test at all. For the past 3 years, she had scored first overall. The green-eyed girl excelled at academics. It was a mixture of natural talent, a determined drive that kept her consistently studying, and a rigid upbringing. Asami was never one to brag about her performance, but she didn’t shy away from destroying any thoughts the other students had of overtaking her in the class rankings.

Her work ethic applied to her combat as well, such as why she and Opal were up at this hour refusing to take a day off.

Asami decided that the gym on RCA’s compass was entirely too far away from the senior dorms. A twenty-minute walk in the morning! Unacceptable! It didn’t help that Opal’s coffee hadn’t completely entered her system, and Asami was definitely grumpy. There were a few other students making their way to the gym as well, which just seemed to irritate Asami, who wanted a peaceful morning workout with Opal and no one else to disturb them.

By now, Opal had perked up and made an effort to pacify Asami’s heated glares at everything. “The weather is amazing today,” she remarked. And the weather was really nice. Republic City had some of its best weather at the end of the summer. With cold winters and warm summers, the climate was pretty neutral, but something about the relaxed fall sunk deep into all Republic City’s citizen’s bones. The oppressive Earth-kingdom-heat started to go away, and it left clear skies and cool mornings. Longer clothes, coffee, and multicolored leaves started to dot the streets.

“Yeah, I guess so,” Asami replied in a tired voice. She slung her workout bag, filled with a tape wrap, towel, and an extra shirt, over her left shoulder, and used her right hand to rub her eyes. Nothing good would come of continuing her morning pout. Time to wake up. 

Opal kept talking. “I’m so nervous about the test today. I really have to do better than I did last year, or Mom is gonna kill me. She almost did last year.”

Asami replied “I honestly don’t really understand that. You did fine last year. Better than the average. That doesn’t seem as bad as Su seemed to think it was.”

“That’s because you don’t know my Mom like I do. She’s all like ‘Why can’t you do as well as your brother or Kuv. They both placed in the top five percent, so if you studied harder, you could do the same.’ Like Spirits, I get that I’m not a genius like either of them, so don’t go placing your expectations for them on me.” 

Bataar Jr. had graduated from RCA three years prior and was very close to becoming valedictorian of his class. He was an engineering genius, and Asami had interacted with him a lot as a freshman at club meetings and classes. They never got incredibly close, but Asami respected his drive and his ability to find unique solutions to design problems. She really enjoyed his presentation on electrical generators not powered by benders that he gave to the younger students on his senior thesis.

Kuvira, on the other hand, was Opal’s adopted sister. She was a senior like them, and Asami spent a ton of time with her, seeing as how she fit extremely well in their friend group. Kuvira was the one person she felt was most similar to herself: ruthlessly competitive when need be, hard-working, and driven. They occasionally clashed, both out on the pro-bending field and in the classroom, but for the most part, the two girls’ differing goals kept each other happy around each other, and Asami had grown to really enjoy the girl’s friendship. Kuvira was never afraid to speak her mind, and Asami appreciated that. It also helped that the girl was crazy talented; her metal bending skills were second to none at RCA, and would surely help her do well in the White Lotus, where Kuvira planned on working after graduation.

“I’m sure she means well,” Asami replied. “Honestly, she’s probably just worried you’ll end up following the path she took as a kid and projecting herself onto you a little.”

“Well, she should get off my back a little bit,” Opal said with a frown, before quickly remembering something and excitedly smiling. “You know my Aunt Lin right?”

“Yeah, it’s kinda hard not to know the chief of police when living in Republic City. I’ve also been over to your house while she was there, remember?” Asami replied.

“Oh yeah, I do remember that.” Opal let out a bit of a giggle. “She’s always so stiff when meeting new people. I thought she was gonna reach out, shake your hand, and give you a business card or something.”

“Why do you bring her up?” Asami asked.

“So Aunt Lin is married to Kya, Tenzin’s sister. I don’t really know the story behind it, but they adopted a water tribe girl named Korra. I’ve met her a couple of times over the years at holidays, and she’s super nice! She’s homeschooled, but she was so cool to talk with. She seemed super smart though, and quiet, and I was a little intimidated at first cause she has this kinda aura, you know…”

“Opal, she sounds like a great person, but do you mind getting to the point,” Asami said with a small grin.

“Oh, sorry, I got a little distracted. Anyways, Mom said she’s planning on coming to RCA! She’s going to transfer into our class(which I think is a little weird), but she’s taking both tests today, and hopefully, she ends up passing both and getting in. You are definitely going to like her, Asami.” Opal was practically beaming now. Asami could tell that this girl had definitely left a deep impression on her, which was saying something because Opal was generally a really good judge of character.

Opal continued with a smirk now, “Last I remember, she was really hot too…”

Asami blushed a little at this. It was no secret, at least in her friend group, that Asami was bi-sexual. She had come out during her freshman year, and she was super glad she had such a supportive friend group that accepted it and always encouraged her. One thing she didn’t appreciate, however, was the small teasing Opal would often subject her to whenever a pretty girl or guy was brought up.

Opal laughed a little seeing Asami’s red cheeks. “She is definitely your type, girl. Super muscular, super smart, super blue eyes.”

Asami had to chuckle a little at this as well. “Relax Ope, let me meet this adopted cousin of yours first before you start shipping us together. Do you even know if she likes women?”

“Nope! Not a clue!” Opal exclaimed in response.

Asami sighed as Opal started dying laughing. “Very funny Ope.”

By now, the two girls had reached RCA’s gym. Along with the rest of the campus, the gym was top notch. The building itself was huge, large enough to accommodate 3 practice pro-bending arenas, a weight room, sparring room, pool, and a couple of other random exercise facilities. A ton of money had gone into ensuring RCA students could train whenever they wanted, however, they wanted. It was one of the nicest parts about living on campus. Asami was often here; she knew the building inside and out from the years of coming to spar and workout.

She and Opal pushed open the double doors at the entrance and made their way to the women’s locker room. Even here, the lockers, showers, and various other amenities exuded an air of wealth and power, seemingly brand new and of the highest quality. Asami knew that RCA had an unbelievable amount of funding, sponsored by many major companies and backed by the donations of previous graduates. She supposed it was reasonable that they spent a ton of money on the facilities, and it wasn’t like she was a stranger to wealth being so openly displayed. The humanitarian in her squirmed a little bit at the excessiveness of it all, but she certainly wouldn’t complain about the niceties of the gym considering how much time she spent there.

After shucking her hoodie, Asami took the time to wrap her hands with her athletic tape. Asami was a bit of a peculiar fighter at RCA. Her father, from a young age, had made sure she was well trained to protect herself in a society so focused on combat. She practiced Jujutsu, a martial art heavily focused on throws and redirection of energy. It was one of the most popular among non-benders, seeing as it eliminated the advantages held by a bender over a non-bender at close ranges. Grappling, throws, and open palm punches were pretty much standard, and Asami was familiar with all of them. This was part of the reason why Asami always wrapped her hands before a fight, diminishing the strain on her grip and palm. She prided herself in her experience in martial arts, her commitment to absorbing as much knowledge as she could from her many teachers and competitors she had fought with over the years. Her strong point was her adaptability, being able to quickly read and react to her opponent’s fighting style and counter with a punch or grab, quick to capitalize on mistakes. Because of this, Asami was the most capable of all the non-bending seniors at the school and could go toe to toe with several of the martial arts instructors employed at RCA. She was honestly probably within the top five student fighters throughout the entire school, including benders, as her practice and study enabled her to find weaknesses and catch opponents unaware. Her strong determination to succeed also pushed her to experiment with chi-blocking, an advanced technique developed by non-benders in the White Lotus to incapacitate bender opponents. She had yet to share her newfound skills with her friends or teachers, but considering the advanced nature of the technique and its effectiveness at leveraging the disadvantages held by non-benders, Asami was pretty confident it would impress them all.

But this wasn’t just her strength in martial arts that made her stand out as a fighter. The most striking feature of watching Asami fight was definitely her electric glove. She had designed it herself in her sophomore year; spent multiple sleepless nights getting the voltage output down correctly, but it made her a monster in the pro-bending arena. It was one of the many non-lethal weapons allowed by referees, and Asami was damn proud of it. Her speed enabled her to get in close, creating an opportunity for a grab of the wrist, throw, and followed by a quick stun, knocking most highschool students unconscious. Even skilled lightning benders struggled to deal with the destructive output Asami held and paired with two other teammates watching her back, it was no wonder Asami always did well at the national pro-bending competition held every year. 

This year, Asami was hoping that her team, made up of Mako, a broody but talented firebender, Bolin, Opal’s boyfriend, and a skilled Earth and Lava-bender, would win the school’s own tournament, which they had come second in last year, and advance on to the regional tournament. Last year’s finals brought back bad memories, and Asami grimaced thinking about the awful loss they had suffered.

This year would be different, she promised herself and her team.

This motivation was partially the reason why she was here with Opal to spar so early in the morning.

Opal was an airbender, a little bit unexpected considering she came from a long line of Earth-benders, including the inventor of metal bending and one of the most famous figures in Republic City Police history, Toph Beifong, and Su Beifong, a former White Lotus operative who was one of the most capable metal benders in history. Not that her family history ever stopped her. Opal was a low key hard worker, unlike her overachieving brother and sister. She, like pretty much all the air benders at RCA, practiced Tai Chi. Opal wasn’t the most aggressive of fighters, but her lean athletic build and constant workouts with Asami pushed her to become a talented combatant in her own right. She, unlike her tall green-eyed sparring partner, was much less interested in pro-bending, but she was happy to support her friends from the sidelines.

The two girls moved out of the changing area into the sparring area. The large room was composed of several boxing rings, along with treadmills, punching bags, and stationary bicycles. There was some light hip-hop music playing through a set of speakers in the ceiling. It was still early, but there were a few other people inside the gym already. Asami recognized a pair of Earth-bender women from the Junior class inside one of the rings and gave them a quick friendly wave before joining Opal at one of the other empty ones. She dropped her workout bag on the steps leading up the side before lifting the red ropes above her head and ducking under to enter the square space, with Opal right next to her.

Asami had a classic warm-up, one that she used before every spar and everything pro-bending match. Couple of jumping-jacks, couple of mobile lunges, couple of jump squats, followed by several minutes of arm circles. It got the blood flowing through her arms and legs, and also centered her mind in preparation to start getting physical with an opponent. Opal was off to the side, also stretching her arms out. 

The girls had a routine whenever they practiced with each other. A warm-up, followed by some light punches and kicks, and then into a full intensity spar. It was pretty unspoken at this point. Asami enjoyed fighting with the Airbender, it gave her a chance to stretch her body out more and some practice dealing with the unpredictable nature of air benders. Asami would refrain from using her glove, simply because it was a little overkill, but that certainly didn't mean she would take it easy on Opal.

Signaling the star with a nod, Asami crouched down with her right foot slightly in front of her left, lowering her center of mass, and raised her forearms in front of her like crab claws. Jujutsu was definitely not the best martial art to deal with a fluid Airbender, as it relied a great deal on counterattacks utilizing the momentum and forward motion of an aggressive attack to knock opponents off balance and onto the ground. Opal rarely, if ever, threw out straight punches or kicks, preventing Asami from retaliating as she would have liked. But that just added to the challenge of their spar, and Asami greatly enjoyed the various ways she had been forced to come up with the counter the shorter girls evasiveness.

Opal, opposite Asami on the other side of the ring, got into her own stance. Legs slightly bent, body squared to Asami, and palms facing upwards in front of her chest. It had helped Opal greatly to have had so much time under the mentorship of Principal Tenzin, one of the most accomplished Airbenders in their age. Tenzin and the Beifongs always had a close relationship (Asami was pretty sure that he had dated Lin when they were a lot younger), and once they realized Opal was an Airbender, not an Earth-bender, it was decided she would train together with Tenzin’s children.

Opal had been a natural from the start, picking up any teaching Tenzin threw at her and trying her best to incorporate all of the stances, movements, and spirituality that he placed as paramount to the Airbender combat style.

Asami was always the first to start their mock fights. Launching herself forward, she kept her body low and palms open as to protect her balance while rushing Opal. It was really important for her to get in close to the Airbender girl, as Asami could not compete with any long-range bursts of air thrown at her. Asami’s plan was to get within striking distance, turn her back into Opal’s chest, grab her arm, and flip her over her shoulders while dodging anything Opal tried to use to stop her.

Opal wasn’t just going to sit still, however. She used a burst of air from both feet to launch into a summersault, an acrobatic move that involved her placing her hands on the ground behind her and rotating her legs over her stomach. The ring itself wasn’t large, maybe ten by ten yards, so Opal didn’t have a ton of room to maneuver in, but she was going to try her hardest to make Asami chase her. Opal landed, before quickly throwing a crossing motion with her hands to send two slices of air at Asami, who was still changing her momentum to fit Opal's new location.

The jets of air coming for Asami would be difficult to deal with, she immediately realized. There was a great amount of force behind each one, and they covered a large area, leaving her little room to dodge. In a split-second decision, she decided to meet it head-on: leaping with both her feet, she dove with hands outstretched above her head into the current coming towards her, bracing herself for the shock that she knew would come. The wind knocked the breath out of Asami as soon as she hit it. She was still in the air, and Asami knew both landing and coming up ready to exchange blows with Opal would take every little ounce of concentration she had, let alone dealing with the backlash of the blasts of air.

Tucking her legs into her chest, Asami concluded that a roll would be the best way to minimize the impact of the landing and enable her to come up right back in a neutral position. She curled her hands into her chest, fists clenched around her neck, and swiftly turned in the air, before landing on the ground and stretching her legs out to stop her momentum. A slight push on the ground and Asami was back standing up, a mere meter away from Opal who was looking slightly nervous.

Chaining her thoughts and actions into a flowing motion, Asami kept the pressure up. She let out a flurry of hand jabs, fingers together and palm pressed forward, at Opal’s midsection, thighs, and head. She did her best to be as unpredictable as possible, changing directions and forcing Opal onto the defensive. Opal was definitely sweating now. There were few students who could defend against a raw attack from Asami, and while Opal was desperately trying her best to sweep the jabs away from her body using fluid motions with her arms, she could tell it wasn’t going to last.

Asami figured it was time to end it. She sent an open left palm at Opal’s right shoulder, to which Opal instantly reacted by attempting to shove it away from her center and harmless into the air to her side. Seeing this, Asami’s right hand darted like a snake to Opal’s wrist, instantly grabbing on tightly. From there, Asami turned her body away from Opal, facing the opposite edge of the ring, and pulled hard with her right hand over her left shoulder. This force sent Opal careening over Asami’s back, through the air, and onto the mat with a thud, knocking the breath out of the already breathless girl.

When Opal opened her eyes next, Asami had her elbow pointed at her trachea, with a smile plastered on her face. Opal had to smile herself. It wasn’t like she didn’t expect the result. Asami was absurdly strong, and while Opal thought of herself as pretty capable, she couldn’t hold a candle to her tall raven-haired friend. They sparred pretty frequently, and Opal rarely, if ever, won(usually off of an extremely lucky blow or an off day on Asami’s part).

Asami offered Opal a hand to her feet before bending over to step out of the ring, unwrapped her hands, and moved to the locker rooms, where she was going to shower for the next twenty minutes to remove the sweat that had built up over her and Opal’s thirty-minute workout. She took a quick look at her phone which had been resting on top of her gym back, and noting that there were no notifications, made her way out of the gym

Thirty minutes late, Opal and Asami stood showered outside of the gym. Asami was now wearing a pair of ripped jeans with multiple oil stains doting the legs, and a creme colored RCA pro-bending hoodie. Opal, conversely, was still decked out in green leggings and a tank top. As much as Asami hated working out in the morning, she really felt a great sense of accomplishment after getting it done so early. It left the rest of the day empty, and she normally would have been grateful for it. Today, however, was the studies test exam, and she did not have time to use that extra daylight for herself. On the bright side, the exam itself wasn’t until the afternoon, giving the girls some five or so hours to kill beforehand, so after some deliberation, Opal and Asami decided to get a cup of coffee at the schools on-campus cafe (definitely another one of the insane privileges belonging to the students of RCA).

The cafe was around a ten-minute walk away from the gym. It was nowhere near as large of a building as the academic or athletic buildings, but it wasn’t small either. Especially now in the mornings, there could be counted on to be at least twenty students either meeting in groups or alone, getting some last-minute studying done or just relaxing. The coffee was okay, definitely pretty good for a school, but nothing special, and Asami preferred the atmosphere in the library more for getting serious work done. Just her own inclination, she guessed. But she was always willing to get some more caffeine, so she never really complained if someone asked her to come.

This morning, the cafe seemed especially busy. The returning students all had one thought on their minds: the studies exam. It was quite a big deal, considering it determined class rankings and was heavily considered by job markets after graduation. If one did well, it was extremely useful for putting on resumes, and even placing in the top thirty percent could get you pretty far in the world. That was just how much influence RCA held. Pretty much every booth and table had students around it, reading through a notebook while sipping coffee, or pouring over a textbook to cram in some last-minute studying. The cafe pretty much exclusively hired old graduates from RCA, considering they knew the culture of the school pretty well, and there were two extra manning the espresso machines this morning. It really was quite hectic.

After waiting in the line, ordering their coffee (Opal was an iced coffee, Asami went for the cold brew), and picking it up, Opal and Asami quickly made their way through the maze of tables and chairs and grabbed a seat at an empty table. Asami noticed Opal was rubbing her upper quad, and a little concerned, asked “Hey, are you okay Ope? Did I hit you too hard?”

Opal replied “Nah, this wasn’t you. I spared with Kuv two days ago, and she got me pretty bad with a metal whip across the thigh. Didn’t think it was that bad at the time, but it’s been fairly sore for the past couple of days. I iced it yesterday, and it’s a lot better today, so I think I’ll do it again today after the studies test.” 

With the mention of the studies test, Opal’s face crinkled into a slight grimace.

“I really don’t wanna take this, but I guess it’s better to not waste the past couple weeks of studying that you’ve forced me to do.”

Asami understood what she meant. The studies test always dropped a pit in Asami’s stomach; no matter how many years she came in first, it would always be as nerve-racking as the first-year freshman entrance exam. It was always a huge relief to be done, to know that it was out of her control.

“Ope, I’m sure you are gonna do fine. You prepared a ton, and I know that you are ready. Just relax for the little time we’ve got until we need to take it.”

Resting her chin on a knuckled hand, Opal responded “Yah, I know you’re right.” After a little pause, she continued “I cannot wait for tonight though.”

Asami had to smile at that: “Me neither.”

The two girls’ conversation flowed away from the studies exam to more enjoyable topics, like summer relationships of their classmates, plans for the school year, and funny stores from their time away from each other. Opal was such a free spirit, always going with the flow, which was part of the reason why Asami enjoyed the girl so much. Their conversation was always incredibly fun, and the girl would never fail to make her laugh. It was mornings like these, sipping on a coffee with the Airbender girl next to her, even with the pressure of an exam in a couple of hours looming over, that Asami really enjoyed about RCA. The school was so stressful all the time, and the students were constantly competing against one another, but in the cafe, just relaxing and not thinking about school, Asami could truly feel the magic that was a high school experience, the highs, and lows that came with it. 

She and Opal sat there for around two hours, sometimes in silence, sometimes in avid conversation, but Asami loved all of it.

Just as Asami was about to wrap up their little bit of relaxation before the studies exam and head back to the dorm, several young students burst into the cafe, seemingly out of breath and panting after they sprinted here. Asami didn’t recognize any of them, and seeing their age, concluded they must have been first-year students who just came from the physical test that she knew had been scheduled this morning, possibly meeting an older sibling for a cup of coffee afterward. She wished they wouldn't be quite as loud as they were being, though. It seemed a little unnecessary, plus what was the rush? There was still a couple of hours before the exam. 

Curious, Asami held up a hand to Opal, who seemed equally interested in the news that these alarmed students would definitely be talking about. And they weren’t disappointed.

A blonde girl, probably a fire bender, ran up to what seemed to be her brother, a junior Asami recognized, sitting at the table next to them. She sat down excitedly, forcefully pulling the chair out from under the table and flying into it. She instantly started speaking extremely quickly: “Okay so I just got done the physical test. I did fine by the way, probably in the middle of the rest of the students. Anyways. There were like 300 other kids trying out at the same time which was a lot apparently. So most of the other kids were like me, struggling to deal with the instructor. He was just way too fast, and even though I had been practicing my Firebending mobility, I couldn’t get away from him. I lasted about forty seconds, which was pretty good. Then some Airbender girl goes up. I heard she was the headmaster’s daughter, which I guess explains why she was so freaking talented. The girl was probably shorter than me, and skinnier, and yet she lasted for a couple of minutes! It was crazy! Spirits, if I could move like she could, I’d be so grateful. She managed to dodge a ton of the teacher’s water bending attacks, and it didn’t even look like he was holding back. I think she was practicing Tai Chi, but honestly, that was just an assumption because almost all Airbenders use Tai Chi. She was just so freaking amazing to watch. I think even dad might even lose to her.” Pausing, the girl took in huge gulps of air after her long rant. The boy had a grin on his face, obviously glad that the girl was so inspired by the physical test.

There were usually a couple of outliers in the physical test. Students of esteemed masters in the world were scarce, but inevitably, they all ended up at RCA. The skills they had developed up until that point were always a shock to the students who had no such formal and extensive training. They were the boundary-pushers, the ones who motivated the rest of the class to study as hard as possible. It didn’t really matter what martial art they practiced, whether they were bender or non-bender. All that mattered was their skill, and their ability to inspire. Asami was one of such students. She could remember her own physical exam well. She had been matched up with an Earth bending test giver and struggled for about ten minutes before taking a boulder to the stomach and falling in. The only other kids who came even close to her time were Kuvira, Mako, and a water bending idiot named Tahno. She had really wanted to win, but she wasn’t strong enough at that point to land a decisive blow. Definitely irked her at the time, but not that it stopped her from achieving the first overall score.

Pretty much the entire cafe was listening to this story being told by a variety of different first-year students. Asami noticed that even an Earth nation history teacher she recognized had come in, shaking his head with what was obviously disbelief. Something definitely must have happened, because although a good Airbender might impress the younger students, it wasn’t enough to shake the professors who had spent years administering these exams. 

Having caught her breath, the girl's voice dropped into a quieter tone for the next shocking bit of information she was going to deliver. “And that wasn’t even it. If it weren’t for the 300 other kids who saw it with me, I probably wouldn’t believe what I saw was even real. They call some girl up to take her test. She must have been a transfer student, cause she seemed on the older side. Maybe a senior? I wasn’t quite sure, but spirits, she was muscular. Sorta tall, sorta lean, super athletic. Definitely works out more than you. I think her name was Korro something? I can’t remember very well, but you can probably ask one of the other kids in here.” At this, Opal and Asami’s eyebrows shot up. Korro was remarkably similar to Korra, a certain muscular transfer student that Opal had mentioned earlier this morning. Seemed like too much to be written off as a coincidence.

“Anyways, she’s wearing like all blue. Grey sweats, blue tank top, blue water tribe armbands, even this cool blue, and white headband. She was obviously water tribe, so we all thought she was gonna be a water bender. She gets out onto the pro-platform so relaxed, almost like she wasn’t about to take a test. I thought she was probably just unbelievably arrogant at first. I mean, this instructor was one of the strongest benders I’ve ever seen. Who did she think she was, going out there looking like it wasn’t even going to be hard. The instructor was probably pissed too, so he rushed her.”

A bit of a pause, probably both for dramatic effect and to collect her thoughts. Then the blonde girl continued.

“I have never seen a non-bender move so fast in my entire life. I couldn’t even make out what martial art discipline she was using, that's how fast she was going. She just stood there, pushed the instructor’s kick up away from her body, and double kicked him. I mean, one kick to the side, one kick to the chest. Dude went flying off the edge of the stage. Spirits, I get goosebumps thinking about it now. Two moves! That’s all she needed! No bending! Just a couple of kicks and a simple block! It was like, effortless. She made it look easy. I’ve never even heard of anybody beating that test. I didn’t even know it was possible. Korro or whatever her name is must have been a master, otherwise no way she would be able to do that. There’s no way. I still can’t believe it, even now. She just walked away afterward, too! Like it wasn’t the most insane thing ever. ‘Oh no biggy, just gonna casually knock an unbeatable professor off the edge in pro-bending, and walk away like nothing happened’.

Asami and Opal’s jaws were dropped at this point. They shared a look. Now they understood what had shaken the entire campus, and why the potential first years were acting so crazed. A student had beat the instructor. Asami knew a bit of the history of the test, and this was the third time an instructor had lost. It was also the only time the exam-giver had lost so decisively, without a significant amount of luck. Without bending(Asami hated the stigma against non-bending fighters, but she had to admit it had a much steeper skill curve and was certainly much harder to do well with)? Extremely unlikely. Two moves? That didn’t happen, wouldn’t happen, ever. Even for an older transfer student.

The cafe was now a mix of exclamations and stunned faces. Gone were the thoughts of the studies exam in a couple of hours. That would happen again next year. This was something that would never happen again in their lives.

Asami quietly asked Opal “Do you know she is a bender or not?”

Opal responded, “No clue, we never fought, and I don’t think Aunt Lin or Mom ever brought it up.” A gulp. “I had no idea she was strong. I guess it makes sense, considering she’s Aunt Lin’s adopted kid. Must have done so much training to get to that point. Sure, she looked incredibly athletic, but she didn't move like a fighter. She just kinda carried herself like a normal person. I sized her up a couple of times, and I put myself coming out on top a decent number of those imaginary fights.”

Asami shook her head. “Ope, from the sound of it, I don’t think you are ever going to even come close to winning a spar against this girl.”

Asami was inwardly more shocked than irritated or jealous. Sure, this cousin of Opal’s one-upped her, doing better on the physical than she had. But the girl obviously had no idea who she was, and it would be very childish to be competing with her, let alone getting angry at her accomplishments, without getting to know her first. She honestly thought this girl would be extremely intriguing to talk to. Korra sounded like someone who had spent years practicing fighting, and Asami could probably relate pretty well to her. It helped that Opal also spoke incredibly highly of her.

At the very least, she was excited to have the chance to spar with Korra. Nothing like a fight against a capable martial artist to spark her own growth

‘This year definitely is going to be unpredictable, that's for sure,’ Asami thought to herself, before throwing her coffee cup into a trashcan and walking out of the building with Opal.

They had a test to get ready for, and while the exciting news of a new capable student in their grade was interesting, she wasn’t going to let it distract her from doing well on this exam.

\-----------

Spirits, was she tired. Back in her dorm room now, Asami was drained. The studies test took a ton out of her. Keeping her mind as sharp as possible for three hours was difficult, even for her. On the bright side, however, she thought she had done pretty well. Maybe well enough to break her previous record of a 97, although she didn’t want to get her hopes up, and the grades probably wouldn’t come out for another hour.

For dinner, the girl had just heated up some leftover takeout from the day before in a microwave. Not exactly fine dining, but she couldn’t be bothered to go out, let alone struggle through cooking something. No thank you, day-old fried rice was good enough.

Just as she was getting settled into the couch, the doorbell rang. Groaning, Asami pulled herself up, walked through the living area of the dorm, and opened the door. She was instantly greeted with a chorus of greetings. She had to smile at that. Her friends definitely were an energetic bunch, and despite how much she currently wanted to sleep, she really appreciated getting to spend some time together with them before their busy school year would start.

Bolin, Opal’s stocky boyfriend, immediately ran up and gave Asami a bone-crushing hug. “Asami! Spirits, I know I saw you yesterday, but it feels like it’s been forever!”

“Bo, you are gonna kill her, relax a little bit. Also, you probably are just gassed from the studies exam, and Asami is as well, so just chill” Mako, his taller, Firebending brother chimed in. The two boys were some of Asami’s closest friends. She’d actually met both of them at their physical exam freshman year, as the two boys sat directly next to her. Asami remembered they wished her luck before she headed up, and for an only child heading into a new school knowing no one, something as simple as a few words of encouragement was a huge deal to her. As the years went by, she got to know the brothers better. Bolin was a jokester, with a huge fun-loving personality. Mako, on the other hand, was a bit more broody, a man of few words and a work-a-holic mentality. They were both orphans, having lost their parents when they were much younger, but their skills and knowledge enabled them to win a scholarship to RCA. They were actually Asami’s pro-bending partners and competed together with her in numerous regional and school competitions. She had had a bit of an awkward relationship with Mako at one point, but they broke it off after realizing they were much better as friends.

Wu and Kuvira were the next to greet her. Wu, as extra as ever, started with an “Asami, it’s so good to see you! You are looking as beautiful as ever.” Asami had to roll her eyes at this one. Wu was the relative of some important Earth Kingdom diplomat, and when Asami first met him, she thought he was rather irritating for throwing around his name like he deserved the world because of his status. But the skinny boy grew on her and definitely matured a lot since freshman year. Still didn’t stop him from hitting on her every once in a while, despite constant rejects from the taller girl.

Kuvira had the simplest of hellos, simply saying “How are you.” She was definitely a serious, no-nonsense person. Not that Asami minded. She felt like Kuvira’s sense of responsibility suited their little group extremely well.

Finally, Opal filed into her dorm room last, shouting in a sing-song voice “What’s up! I hope you weren’t planning on going to bed early, were you girl? Cause we are gonna party! Exams are done! Thank Spirits!”

“Yah, yah, yah, whatever you say, Ope,” Asami replied. She had no intention of “partying”, even for a little bit. Relaxation, checking the scores and going to bed. That was pretty much all Asami had left in her for the day.

They all moved to Asami’s couch and a couple of chairs she kept in the living area, before crashing in their usual spots, and instantly starting to talk. Similar to Opal and her coffee date that morning, her friends were always down to talk about anything. That’s what kept it interesting. They all pretty much knew everything about each other, so they entertained themselves with bits of gossip and news from the summer. Of course, the first thing on everyone’s mind was the shocking news that came from the physical test this morning. As soon as Opal had left the cafe with Asami, she relayed what they had overheard in their group chat. The reactions were unsurprising. They even solicited a “Woah” out of Kuvira, who was notorious for her mundane reactions to everything. The rumors of this mystery girl had already made their way around the entire campus at this point, and there was a mass of speculation about her history, where she came with, how strong she was, and what martial art she used. Being friends with Opal definitely had its perks in a situation like this, considering her somewhat intimate knowledge of Korra, but even that didn’t really reveal much.

Mako spoke on the subject quietly “I’ve heard about fifty percent of the people I’ve talked to about it say she’s a water bender, and the other fifty are sure she’s a non-bender.”

Opal chimed in “I think she has to be a non-bender. It would be pretty impossible for somebody to reach that level of combat skill in hand to hand while also training bending. I mean, she’s just a high schooler, so she could have started learning to fight at like ten at the earliest. No matter how good of a job Aunt Lin did training her, she wouldn’t be able to keep track of two disciplines.”

Kurvira nodded her head. “I am inclined to agree with that. Nobody even knows what martial art she used. Pretty much the only consistent thing about the story is that she used kicks to knock the teacher off the edge, so maybe kick-boxing? Could also be taekwondo.”

Chuckling, Bolin spoke up “Kuv, if she uses taekwondo, you think she could beat you?”

“Not sure,” Kuvira honestly replied. “I’ve beaten an instructor before, just like she has, but from what I’ve heard, she did it pretty dominantly, so I guess I’d have to see her fight before making any judgments.”

Wu was the next to talk. “I’ve heard that she was unbelievably hot. Like, giving Asmai a run for her money hot. Maybe I’ll have to introduce myself at the opening ceremony…”

Mako grinned at that. “Only you could start hitting on a girl without even meeting her.”

They all fell into a fit of giggles at that. It was pretty evident that they all wanted to get to know this new cousin of Opal’s, but then again, so did the whole school. All of the stories seemed to build her up to being this god-like figure, but Opal had said the girl was incredibly humble, even shy. Which was reasonable, considering she was homeschooled.

Their conversation continued for about an hour before any of them realized it was finally time to check the results of the studies exam. They all excitedly pulled out their phones and opened the email sent to all of the students with the pdf of attached scores. Asami, scrolling up from the bottom, was happy to hear that her friends had all done well. Opal was running around the room yelling about her 87, a whole 8 percent higher than she had done last year. Mako and Bolin had gotten a 90 and 89 respectively. Wu smiled happily, telling them all that he had scored an 83. Even Kuvira seemed pretty happy, and Asami saw that she had received a 95. Finally, they all reached the top of the pdf and collectively froze.

Student Studies Exam Scores:  
Asami Sato - 98; Korra Beifong - 98

Opal whispered out of the side of her mouth which was now hanging open for the second time that day “No way…”


End file.
